Can you tell us about your artistic background?

I’m a dancer and choreographer, but I also work as a movement director in the fashion sector. I started learning hip hop in Clermont-Ferrand at the age of nineteen. Prior to that, I had started a career in marketing… but dance stole me away on a ride to another destiny. I joined the Académie Internationale de la Danse in Paris aged twenty-two. I learnt all about the traditional dance styles and dancing in stilettos at the dance school. I managed to complete several internships around the world, in Amsterdam, New York and Madrid. Over the same period, I danced on the Paris Ballroom scene for seven years. I have also been part of the Mehdi Kerkouche contemporary dance troupe in the past, and am currently part of Manon Bouquet’s troupe. To date, I have mostly worked as a background dancer for musical performers, which has enabled me to gain experience with tours, clips and television studios. I have built up my own artistic repertoire thanks to all of these projects. I would say that my current style is inspired by contemporary, vogue and stilettos.

What does Crazy Horse Paris represent for you?

I have dreamt of Crazy horse Paris forever. As a male dancer, I could never have imagined performing in this historically female-only cabaret one day. I love playing with convention, bleeding the lines between men and women, disturbing the waters. I am truly passionate about my aims, both on stage and in my real life, and Crazy Horse Paris makes it all possible. I have always been fascinated by femininity and the energy women give out. I dream of living in a world filled with women! So I think I’m in the right place!

What attracts you to femininity?

I love the constant two-sided nature of femininity, on the one hand, women are powerful and deep, and on the other hand, they are fragile, beautiful and poetical. A bit like a silver feather. It may look splendid, weak and vulnerable on the outside, but it is in fact solid, precious and strong.

How would you describe your Crazy Horse personage?

My number is called Mon ami Pierrot. And my personage is a lot like me. I am inspired by Pierrot, the sad clown, and Marceau, the mime artist, and combine those influences with the visual impact and movements of ballroom dancing. This is a highly intimate number, I dance to Comme ils disent, by Aznavour, a singer I have listened to all my life, and who has left his mark. The song tells the story of a lonely homosexual man, a cabaret artist, who people systematically watch and often judge. I have often felt like that myself, like many people in my community. The number mixes lip synch, dance, a striptease and make-up removal. There is something very poetical, but also deeply melancholic, about it. I combine different types of practices to tell a story and portray an emotion. This number is cathartic for me, and I can’t get enough of it.

Can you describe your universe in three words?

Queer, honest and imperfect.

Can you describe your target atmosphere in the theatre?

I love pushing the audience to ask themselves questions, shaking them in their convictions a little, with an emotional focus. I like creating confusion for a second in time, leaving people slightly lost when faced with a lack of convention: a moustache, highly queer make-up, a non-binary outfit, revealed bit by bit…If I manage to convey some kind of emotion to the audience, and encourage them to reconsider their view of differences, then I’m happy. The song is in French, and we have audience members from all around the world, but people often tell me: “We might not have understood the words, but we understood everything.” And I love that.

How do you see the emblematic Crazy Horse Paris dancers who share the show?

I love them all! They are fabulous, inspiring, I absolutely love everything female, and here I am set in an endless supply of beauty, talent, strengths, technical prowess and magic…My favourite part is how Crazy Horse Paris makes the sensuality and nudity of its dancers simply sublime. Even though the theatre and the stage are very small, the setting creates a certain distance, leaving the dancers seeming untouchable and precious. Even knowing what goes on backstage, the magic works its wonders. That’s pretty rare.

What do you think is the magic Crazy Horse Paris ingredient that has ensured its success for the last seventy-five years?

Crazy Horse Paris has always had a very classy and fashionable side, reflecting France’s reputation worldwide. I also think the lighting is critical. No other cabaret dresses its female dancers in light like Crazy Horse Paris. The optical illusion is the work of a genius. Finally, the show format is rather special, the theatre is cosy, almost boudoir-like, the audience is so close to the dancers, they are practically immersed in the show. You don’t dine here, you watch the show. Every little detail is designed to create a unique artistic experience. And that changes everything.

Which number in the Totally Crazy show do you think is the most mesmerizing?

Lay Lazer Lay, zero doubt. This is the darkest number in the show, based on the feeling of pain, with a freer performance style than the other numbers, so it comes across as more emotionally sincere and heart-felt in my eyes.  It is also visually astounding. The beams of light, smoke, wet hair and wheel movements all combine to totally capture the audience’s attention. The silence is deafening. I love the tension in the air.

Photos: Paul Morel